HSU Captures Fourth Straight

ABILENE, Texas — It is rare that you have a four game winning streak and a four game losing streak in the same season, but the Hardin-Simmons football team extended its winning streak to four games with a 38-22 win over Texas Lutheran in American Southwest Conference action at Shelton Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

The Cowboys moved to 5-4 on the year with the win and to 4-3 on the year in ASC action. TLU remained winless at 0-8 overall and 0-6 in league play.

Hardin-Simmons jumped on the board first by going 86 yards in 10 plays. Steven Rockwell capped the drive with a 14-yard touchdown run. It was the start of a big day for Rockwell as he finished the day with 133 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns.

Allen Cain gave the Bulldogs their only points of the first half with a 40-yard field goal with 14:15 to play in the first half. HSU could not move the ball after a 64-yard kickoff return by freshman Devin Carver and had to settle for a 36-yard field goal by Alex Wymore that made it 10-3 with 12:39 to play in the first half.

The Cowboys, who has their best special teams day of the season, blocked a Franke Vera and turned it into a score. Bronson Buzzard blocked the ball and two plays later Taylor Byrd hit senior Justice Baker on a 36-yard touchdown pass to make it 17-3 with 6:15 to play in the half. Baker was one of 16 Cowboy seniors playing their final game at Shelton Stadium.

Rockwell capped HSU’s opening drive of the second half with a 6-yard touchdown run to make it 24-3. TLU scored its first touchdown of the game on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Rocky Huff to Billy Hardee and the PAT was blocked to make it 24-9 with 10:18 to play in the third quarter.

Derrick Grant then scored on a 4-yard run for the Cowboys, the first play after Caleb Christian had intercepted Huff and returned the interception o the 4-yard line. The scoring barrage continued in the third quarter as Jonathon Randle got behind the Cowboy secondary for a 49-yard touchdown pass and Travis Tatsch scored on a 5-yard pass from Byrd to make it 38-16 heading into the fourth quarter.

TLU’s Steven Thrash scored the lone points of the fourth quarter on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Huff.

Byrd threw for 159 yards and two touchdowns for the Cowboys and Huff had 190 yards and three scores for TLU.

Two of the better defensive ends in the ASC had big games for each team. Chris Kyle had two sacks and nine tackles for TLU and Hank Horsby led the Cowboys with seven tackles and two sacks. James Morgan-Hadnot and Paul Girard also had seven tackles for the Cowboys.

Hardin-Simmons will close out its season on Saturday at crosstown rival McMurry for the Wilford Moore Trophy. The Cowboys have won 21 straight in the series and have never lost to McMurry under Keeling. Both teams will go into the game riding four-game winning streaks.